


Back Again

by Sanctum_Sanctorum



Series: One Last Time [2]
Category: Doctor Strange (2016), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Anxiety, Blood and Injury, Kissing, Love, M/M, Reunion Fic, Surgery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-18
Updated: 2018-03-18
Packaged: 2019-04-03 23:38:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,658
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14007345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sanctum_Sanctorum/pseuds/Sanctum_Sanctorum
Summary: Sequel to 'One Last Time'It's been over a year and Tony is finally coming to terms with the fact he will probably never see the man he loves ever again. That is until one afternoon, Stephen Strange appears in his kitchen covered in blood.





	Back Again

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve been working on this fic for what feels like forever. I was utterly overwhelmed by the response ‘One Last Time’ received and I would like to sincerely thank everyone who read that fic and left comments and kudos. This fic is set a little over a year after ‘One Last Time’ finishes. I really hope you enjoy this and feedback is always appreciated.
> 
> Trigger warnings: Blood and injury, surgical scenes and anxiety. There are also mentions of character death.

Stephen furrowed his brow. "Dormammu made you a murderer. Just how good can his kingdom be?" 

Kaecilius laughed and Stephen felt repulsed. 

"You think that's funny?" asked the doctor. 

"No. No, Doctor," said Kaecilius still laughing. "What's funny is that you've lost your Sling Ring."

Stephen felt unnerved by Kaecilius’ sneer and he checked his clothing for his Sling Ring and turned on his heel to see if he had dropped it after his scuffle with the other sorcerer and at that very moment he felt something small and sharp penetrate his chest just a few inches from his heart. He gasped loudly and couldn’t find his breath, he instinctively reached for his chest but he couldn’t feel whatever it was that had stabbed him. The object had dissolved into his flesh like water. He could feel his blood, warm and sticky, as it coated his shaking fingers. He swayed struggling to maintain his balance from the impact of the assault. He was vaguely aware of one of Kaecilius’ zealots climbing the stairs towards him and he felt as the other man put his arms around him and threw him down the steps. He groaned as he tumbled down the steps and yelled out in pain as he hit his wounded chest hard off the tiled floor. 

Never in his life had he experienced pain like this. He could hear the zealot who had attacked him laughing at the top of the stairs and he heard Kaecilius say something to his student but his ears were ringing and his voice was muffled so he couldn’t make out what had been said but he doubted it was anything good. He knew that he needed to get out of here or he was a dead man.

Stephen tried to pull himself up onto his feet but he almost instantly dropped back down to the floor with an unceremonious plop. He felt beaten. The zealot hadn’t come towards him yet, but he could tell he was pacing at the top of the stairs, stalking him like a lioness corners her prey before going in for the final kill. Stephen took a deep breath. He hadn’t gone through everything he had gone through in the last twelve months to be killed by some dark magic fanatic. With a lot of effort Stephen somehow managed to pull himself to his feet. His vision swam with black dots and he almost instantly fell again and had to hold onto the banister on the stairs as his knees buckled beneath him. He yelled out in pain again as the sudden movement stretched the wound on his chest. He just wanted to lie down and for the pain to stop. He looked up weakly and saw the zealot on the top of the stairs beginning to make his way towards him and he knew he would be killed if he didn’t move. 

Now. 

Stephen managed to pull himself away from the banister of the stairs and weakly stepped down the hall. Every step sent another flash of pain through his chest. He made an attempt to stem the bleeding with his hand but he knew his efforts were futile. He was losing too much blood. He estimated at this stage he had about three minutes of consciousness left and that if he didn’t receive urgent medical attention within the next five minutes he would die. He felt his blood oozing through his fingers and dripping to the floor and he heard the footsteps of the zealot behind him. The man could easily outrun him and finish him there and then and Stephen knew this. The man was still toying with him. Stephen knew the zealot could have easily killed him long ago but he wanted to see Stephen to beg for his life or panic. Stephen felt trapped, he had mere seconds to get out of here and there was a voice in his head telling him that he wasn’t going to make it. 

He fell. 

He hit the floor with a graceless crash and for a moment he just lay there. New waves of pain were coming with every pant and he knew it was all over. This was it, he was going to die on the floor of some old building in Greenwich Village. Alone. He could hear the zealot behind him laugh at how pathetic he looked and he closed his eyes. He wanted to tell the man to just get on with it and finish him already. He tried in vain to relax as he heard the man behind him unsheathe his weapon and prepare for the final strike. 

Stephen was dragged back and for a horrible moment he thought he was about to get his throat slit, but he then felt a sudden weight leave his shoulders. Stephen felt confused and with effort he pulled himself up slightly and turned to see the Cloak that he was wearing had thrown itself on the zealot and had brought him to the floor and was repeatedly bashing the man's head against the floor. 

As the man was hit against the floor again and again, the Cloak flung the zealot's Sling Ring towards the doctor. Stephen's shake in his hands was more intense than ever as he reached for the Sling Ring. Stephen tried to pull himself to his feet but fell back towards the floor almost instantly. His strength had left him completely. He couldn’t fail now, he had one last shot of getting out of this place alive. He tried once more to pull himself to his feet. His head swam as he finally managed to stand.

 

God, he was about to pass out... Stephen blearily looked back as the Cloak thing continually banged the zealot's head against the tiled floor. 

Stephen turned back around too quickly and he felt light-headed. He began to think that even with the Sling Ring he wouldn't make it out of the Sanctum. He swayed as he tried to cast a spell and he thought of the hospital… He was supposed to think of the hospital... Right? He'd get help there... Christine would be there… She would help him… He would be okay… 

Yet... 

Stephen couldn't picture the hospital in his mind... He was dying… Everything hurt and he was so... so... tired but he just couldn't see... it... He... He needed... 

Something else... 

Someplace else... 

Someone else... 

 

Stephen finally managed to open a portal and stumbled through it. He groaned as he fell heavily against a wall. He left a bloody handprint on the wall but he couldn't think about that now. He stumbled again and had to hold onto the dresser for support and knocked a few bottles of aftershave and moisturiser to the floor. He gripped onto the dresser as he tried to catch his breath. He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror and saw how bad he looked. He looked like death and felt like it too. He needed to find help…. He needed to find him… He heard a voice from the other room and he limped towards it. He could hear him. 

Stephen stumbled out of the hall, dragging his body along the wall for support until he reached the kitchen and he stilled as he looked over towards the living room. He could see him now. He was sitting on the sofa and talking on the phone. The man hadn’t seen him yet. He stumbled forward and nearly knocked over a chair and saw Tony Stark looking up at the noise and towards him. 

His vision was beginning to blur at the edges but he saw Tony stand up from the sofa and stare at him. Tony threw his phone back down on the sofa as Stephen swayed. 

"Stephen?" said Tony confused. 

"Tony," breathed Stephen weakly. He made a move to step forward but suddenly he felt like he was drowning, the pain got worse and everything went black, he made a weak move to grab onto the kitchen counter to save himself from falling and the jolting action caused him to yell out in pain. There was a rushing sound in his ears. He thought Tony yelled his name but he couldn't be sure. 

He felt strong safe arms wrap around him and gently lower him down towards the floor. He leant into Tony’s chest and he took in the welcome scent of him. He felt he could finally relax. It was as if the pain lessened the second Tony held him. He found he didn’t care about the pain anymore, he could barely feel it now. He allowed himself to fall deeper into Tony’s arms. He felt at home here. 

"Hey," said Tony worriedly. He knelt down on his kitchen floor as he cradled Stephen in his arms. "Stephen... Stephen can you hear me? Stay with me okay? You're going to be okay." 

Tony said something else but Stephen didn't hear it. He just wanted to sleep now. Fall asleep in Tony’s arms like he had so many times in the past. He was so tired. 

Tony put his hand on Stephen’s chest and felt the blood from the wound seep through his fingers. “Oh, shit,” he said. “Stephen? Stephen, can you hear me? Stephen what happened?”

Stephen blinked slowly and looked blearily up at Tony, he was saying something… What was he saying? Stephen couldn’t hear him anymore. He wasn’t able to focus on the man’s words. He felt Tony hold him closer and even though he knew he should probably be worried about the blood loss and not being able to pay attention to what Tony was saying he breathed out a sigh, he felt relaxed in Tony’s arms... He could rest now… If he just let his body relax for… five minutes then he would have enough energy to get up… Five minutes… He felt groggy… Maybe ten minutes… Stephen closed his eyes but Tony started shaking him almost instantly. Stephen groaned. Why was he like this? Why was he shaking him? He could never just let him be... Let him sleep… 

"No, you don't." said Tony his voice stern. "You do not fall asleep on me, Strange. Stay with me." 

Stephen blearily opened his eyes and looked up at Tony. It took him longer than it should have to focus on his face. His whole head was swimming and everything hurt, even keeping his eyes open seemed like an impossible task… He was just so tired… The last thing he saw before succumbing to the darkness was Tony's concerned face looking down at him.

Stephen went limp in Tony's arms and for a moment Tony froze. He looked down at the unconscious doctor in his arms. What was even happening? One minute he was sitting trying to think of reasons why not to drink and talking to Rhodey and the next Stephen Strange was just there in his kitchen wearing a fucking tunic and covered in blood. 

Tony took a deep breath and tried to calm down. He needed to figure out what he had to do. He tried to rouse Stephen but the man was out cold. "Shit," said Tony as he put his fingers on Stephen’s neck and checked the other man's pulse. It was weak, very weak, but there. Just. 

Tony bit his lip and realising that sitting here on his kitchen floor was doing neither of them any good, he hooked his arm under Stephen's knees and wrapped his other arm around the man's shoulders and lifted him up gently. He carried him and for a second as he wasn't sure what to do... He could put him in the car and drive him to the hospital but he had a haunting feeling that Stephen wouldn't survive the trip... He could call an ambulance but again he wasn’t sure if Stephen could wait for that… He had the medical supplies in his lab... A necessity from his early days when he was perfecting his Arc Reactor. Granted he had never had to use half of the supplies and he wasn’t even sure how to use most of them. Fucking hell trust the doctor to be the one who needed medical attention. Tony came to the conclusion that he had no other choice but to try and tend to Stephen himself, at least until he could stabilise him and then he could call for help. Tony adjusted Stephen in his arms and began to jog down the hall to his lab. He wouldn’t let Stephen die on his watch. 

***

Stephen’s astral form ejecting from his unconscious body felt like when you finally come up for air after spending too long under the water. Stephen gasped before taking in his surroundings. 

Tony’s house. 

He felt himself relax just at the sight of the familiar walls, he was still in somewhat of a between realm. Tony couldn’t see him yet but he could see everything Tony could see. He saw his own limp body in Tony's arms as Iron Man ran down the hallway of his home towards his lab. 

Tony looked scared and Stephen felt instant guilt for putting him through this. He knew really that he probably should have opened up the portal to the hospital but he just hadn’t been able to picture it in his mind and when he thought of where he wanted to be if he was dying and who he would want to spend his last moments with then… It was always going to be Tony.

“You’re going to be okay,” said Tony to the unconscious Stephen in his arms. “Okay, you’re… you’re going to be okay.” The man seemed to be trying to convince himself more so than anyone else. Stephen floated alongside Tony and his body and grimaced at Tony’s words. He could hear a nervousness in them that he wasn’t used to hearing from Tony. Stephen realised he was going to have to help him with this and with a breath he pushed through into Tony’s realm. 

"I'll guide you through this okay?" he said floating above Tony. 

Tony jumped and screamed and almost dropped Stephen’s body to the floor. Honestly, if the scenario wasn't so serious Stephen would have cried with laughter. 

"Hey!" he said instead. "Be careful with me, I'm dying there." 

"What the Hell is going on?!" asked Tony, he took a step back and looked at the lifeless Stephen in his arms before looking back at the floating one before him. Oh, man… He was seeing a ghost. A fucking ghost. Just when he thought the night couldn’t get any worse there was a ghost in his house. He looked up at the floating Stephen before him and a shudder went through him as he realised what seeing a ghost meant. It was only then that he noticed he couldn’t tell whether or not the man in his arms was breathing. Had he already lost him? "Are you dead?" he asked weakly his voice small.

"No, but I am dying," said Stephen simply. He really wanted to comfort Tony and tell him that everything was going to be okay but… He was bleeding out right now and he didn’t have the time to reassure him. He felt a tightness in his heart that wasn’t from the injury. He shouldn’t be putting Tony through this. "What you're seeing is my Astral Form." 

"Stephen, I-

Stephen looked at his body in Tony's arms. He really needed to get himself to that lab. "Look, I don't have time to explain. Tony, I need medical attention. Now." 

Tony stared at Stephen's astral form for a moment before nodding. "Even your ghost is bitchy," he said as he broke into a run down the hall. 

Stephen rolled his eyes and floated after him. 

Tony finally reached his lap and he gently lay Stephen's body on a table. He looked at him for a moment a bit unsure of what to do before he began tearing open his tunic. "Too good for t-shirts now too, are we?" he said. He was worried about how bad the cut was going to be and wanted to say anything just to break the tension. 

"Shut up," said Stephen as he floated over to the other side of the table and watched as Tony ripped open his clothing. 

Tony pulled away all the fabric from Stephen's chest and cursed. It was bad. Worse than he had been expecting and he felt his blood run cold. "What happened?" 

"Stabbed," said Stephen as he checked over his own injuries. He scowled. He of course had seen much worse in his time at the hospital but the people he had seen who were much worse had often died. “I’ll guide you through this, okay?” he said looking over to Tony. 

Tony looked up at the floating Stephen and nodded. He just accepted the fact he was dreaming and this was some weird as fuck nightmare. 

"You need to relieve the pressure," said Stephen gesturing first to his own chest and the towards the equipment Tony stored in a glass cabinet behind the table. 

Tony looked at Stephen’s chest. “How do I do that?” 

“You’re going to need a needle and- “

Tony stopped listening after needle. He wasn’t exactly squeamish but he also wasn’t a huge fan of needles… Who was? As Stephen recited a litany of medical terms and words with a lot of syllables Tony gathered together what he needed. “Just tell me exactly what to do to keep you alive, okay?” 

Stephen nodded and guided Tony through setting up the needle and making sure Tony connected him to a monitor so they could keep an eye on his heart. 

Tony took a deep breath as he held the needle shakenly over Stephen's chest. Stephen had explained exactly what to do but he was nervous. There were no second chances here. He either saved Stephen’s life or he killed him and for once he didn’t feel like the odds were stacked in his favour.

"Do it," said Stephen softly as he recognised Tony’s fear. "You won't hurt me and if you don't do it then I'll be dead." 

"You were always great at the pep talks." 

“I’m just trying to piss you off so you won’t feel as bad about stabbing me in the chest with a needle.”

Tony looked up at the floating Stephen and smiled weakly. “It’s working,” he said.

Floating Stephen returned his smile. “Good.”

Tony took one last deep breath and got to work on beginning to relieve the pressure in Stephen's chest. He was lost in concentration for few seconds and Stephen thought it was cute the way Tony’s tongue peaked out of his mouth when he was focusing on something really hard. He was so taken aback by watching Tony that he didn’t hear the man when he spoke. 

“Sorry, what?”

“Even your ghost ignores me,” muttered Tony.

“I’m not a ghost.”

“Whatever you say Casper,” said Tony.

Stephen rolled his eyes again.

“I said,” repeated Tony. "What were you stabbed with?"

Stephen shrugged. "I don't know."

"You’ll need to keep a closer eye to that heart monitor," said Stephen as he looked at his own readings on the screen, he wasn’t happy with what he saw. 

Tony looked up at him worriedly. 

Stephen grimaced. He didn’t want to worry Tony but he also didn’t want to pretend to him that he was going to be okay. "I was stabbed in the chest and I've lost a lot of blood; my heart could give out any moment,” he said finally.

Tony just nodded and divided his attention between doing as he was told by Stephen as the surgeon guided him through relieving the pressure on his chest and glancing at the heart monitor. Stephen watched as Tony worked, he was no doctor but he was always skilled with his hands and he was a quick learner. Stephen suspected that he had received some sort of at least basic medical training over the last few years but he guessed that when you were part of the Avengers knowing how to stitch up wounds was a must. 

Tony was finally starting to calm down and seemed to be in a rhythm with his work when Stephen looked up and saw the astral form of the zealot who had stabbed him coming towards him. He’d been followed. He realised too late that he had never closed the portal in Tony’s bedroom. 

"Shit," he said.

"What?" asked Tony. "Did I do something wrong?" 

"No," said Stephen distracted when the zealot finally saw him and began to float menacingly towards him. "There's something I need to sort out. I'll be right back."

"What?"

"Keep me alive, will you?" said Stephen before disappearing in front of Tony's eyes. 

Tony looked around him but Stephen was gone. "Asshole," he said under his breath as he continued to work on the Stephen in front of him. Now what? Tony had help clean up regular cuts and grazes that the team had got over the years it was never anything that was this level of serious, he was way out of his depth here. He took a deep breath and continued to work and hoped that Stephen would return from whatever ghost shit he was doing soon. 

Tony was utterly oblivious to the fight that took place above his head as Stephen fought the zealot. The zealot threw Stephen towards Tony and Stephen’s astral form crashed hard into a table. The table beside Tony shook with the impact and Tony jumped. “Stephen?” he asked but there was no reply. He looked at the table but saw nothing. He cursed himself under his breath, what was he? Twelve? Jumping because the table shook. He kept nervously watching the heart monitor... Stephen's heart rate was dwindling fast... 

Tony could feel panic rising from his stomach. He looked at Stephen's face and the man looked dead. He was still and pale and just... lying there. Tony had seen a lot of corpses in his day and Stephen would blend right in with them. He couldn't die... He couldn't lose him too. 

At that moment, Stephen flatlined. Tony froze. He just looked at Stephen's still form on the table. He was gone... Gone... Gone... 

He’d lost him.

No.

No.

NO.

He needed to do something... Anything... He couldn’t give up on him, not on Stephen.

He finally snapped out of it and made a run to grab the defibrillator. Please God just let this work. 

Tony waited as the defibrillator charged up and found himself grabbing Stephen's lifeless hand and holding onto it. "Please," he said simply before taking the defibrillator in is hands taking a deep breath and hit Stephen with the paddles. 

Stephen's body jumped off the table slightly with the shock and Tony's attention jumped straight to the heart monitor. No change. 

Shit. 

"Come on man," breathed out Tony. "Just don't do this on me,” he pleaded as he waited for the defibrillator to charge up again. Why didn’t he just take Stephen to the hospital? Or call an ambulance? If he lost Stephen because of his own bad choices he would never forgive himself. The defibrillator flashed and Tony took a deep breath. It was time to try again.

Tony hit Stephen again and checked the heart monitor, Tony felt as if time was standing still, all he could hear was the drumming of his own heart and the solid note of the heart monitor… 

Until…

The monitor bleeped. Once…

Then again.

And again, as Stephen's heart finally started again and the heart monitor showed a steady but slow beat. 

Tony let out a breath he didn't even realise he was holding. He fell to his knees and took Stephen’s hand in his own and kissed it. He’d really thought he had lost him then and he couldn’t let that happen. He couldn’t lose him. Not Stephen. Never Stephen. Tony kissed each of Stephen’s knuckles softly as he began to calm down. He slowly got to his feet and kissed Stephen on the forehead gently as if he didn’t want to disturb him. Tony sighed heavily again and covered his eyes with the heel of his palms and inhaled deeply. Stephen wasn’t out of the woods yet and if he didn’t go back to helping him than he could flatline again and maybe next time he wouldn’t be able to bring him back. 

Stephen’s ghostly form suddenly sprang back into the room just above Tony’s head and Tony jumped back and fell against the counter top. “JESUS FUCKING CHRIST, STEPHEN! He yelled. "DON'T DO THAT!" 

"Hit me again," said Stephen gesturing towards the defibrillator completing ignoring Tony’s protests.

"What?" gasped Tony catching his breath again after seeing Stephen’s…. whatever the fuck he said this ghost thingy was supposed to be. 

"Hit me again."

"Your heart is beating!"

Stephen rolled his eyes at him and Tony quickly decided he hated Ghost Stephen. 

"Just do it!" snapped Stephen sharply. Before Tony could argue Stephen pushed back and disappeared again. Tony cursed under his breath. In that moment, Tony thought that Stephen was lucky he was dying because if he wasn't he'd kill the bastard himself for his angsty teen attitude. 

Tony charged up the defibrillator again and took the paddles in his hands once more. He glanced over at the monitor which was given a steady albeit slightly slow heart rate before looking back at Stephen on the table before him. 

“If you die Stephen,” he said. “I swear… I am bringing you back just to kill you again for putting me through this.” Tony took another deep breath and he hit Stephen again.

The burst of energy in the room was more than the defibrillator, Tony could sense it. The lights blew and Tony flinched before quickly folding his body over Stephen's in case shards from the broken lightbulb would shower over Stephen. He couldn't risk him getting hurt any further. He had to protect him. 

After a few moments, Tony finally lifted his head and looked at the very still Stephen under him. He quickly turned to the heart monitor only to see it had shut off after the explosion of power.

“Shit,” he pulled up from Stephen but he couldn’t tell if he was breathing or not. Hell, right now he wasn’t sure if he was breathing himself. Tony gulped and with shaking fingers reached to check Stephen's pulse before the doctor suddenly gasped loudly and jumped up from the table. 

Tony bounced back in shock. "Fuck," he snapped. "I told you not to do that!" 

Stephen looked around the room as he chuckled tiredly before falling back against the table. "I'm okay, thanks for asking, by the way,” he said with a smirk to Tony. 

"You know I've a bad heart man, that's no way to treat me," said Tony as he began to gather the equipment to clean up Stephen and to stitch him back up. 

"What are you? 80?" 

"Hey," said Tony pointing a stern finger at Stephen. "You should be nicer to the devilishly handsome man who is about to stitch you up." 

Stephen wanted to keep up with Tony’s banter but he felt utterly exhausted. He shrugged weakly at Tony’s joke and closed his eyes. 

"Oh, hey," said Tony shaking his shoulder. Stephen blearily opened his eyes. 

"None of that," said Tony. "I'm not having you crashing on me again."

"You really missed your calling as a doctor," said Stephen. He closed his eyes again. He wasn’t deliberately being difficult, he just felt utterly beat and keeping his eyes open felt near impossible right now. “Doctors really do make the worst patients,” he thought to himself. 

"I would have whumped your ass in the medical field and you know it," said Tony as he began to clean Stephen's wound with some antiseptic liquid. Stephen hissed at the sting of the solution and opened his eyes. Tony smiled softly. “Ah, that got your attention didn’t it?” he sneered. “Try and fall asleep on me again and I’ll stitch you up without giving you any pain killers.” 

They stayed silent for a moment, Stephen focusing on his breathing as Tony started to stitch him up. Once Tony was sure of what he was doing he finally broke the silence. “So,” he began. “Are you in a play?” 

“What?”

Tony vaguely gestured to Stephen’s clothes. 

“Oh,” said Stephen flushing slightly, “no.” 

Their eyes met and Stephen noticed Tony looked more tired, older than when he’d last seen him. It had only been a little over a year since their night together but it felt longer. There were worry lines on Tony’s face that hadn’t been there the last time they met and Stephen wondered what had happened in New York with the Avengers in the last year. He opened his mouth to ask but Tony spoke first.

“Three hundred and eighty-two,” said Tony. 

Stephen grimaced at the tug of the needle. Clearly stitches weren’t one of Tony’s strong points. “What?” 

“Three hundred and eighty-two days since I drove you to the airport for your flight to Nepal,” said Tony. “You didn’t call me once, not even to say that you landed safely.”

“Tone-

“No emails either,” said Tony. “Checked my inbox every day for months. Nothing.” 

“Tony, I-

“Not a single text message.”

“Listen, Tony-

"I thought you were dead." 

Stephen felt a sharp pain in his chest and it wasn't the stab wound. 

"I contacted every hospital, every medical clinic, Hell… I phoned everyone who practiced medicine at all in Kathmandu and none of them had any record of you,” said Tony in a deadpan voice as he continued to stitch up Stephen’s wound. Stephen wanted to say something… anything but there were no words.

“I flew out there with your photo and asked everyone who would listen to me if they had seen you and…” Tony paused. “Nobody had. Not one person recognised you. There was no trace of you at all. Nothing.” Tony put everything down and gripped the sides of the table and let out a shaky breath. “I thought... I thought that whatever procedure you'd travelled there for didn't work out. I saw how low you were, Stephen. You were at rock bottom and when I was getting no word from you at all... I thought... Well, I thought you..."

Tony left the sentence hanging but he didn't need to finish it. 

"I'm sorry, Tone," said Stephen quietly. 

Tony said nothing. He just cleaned his hands before he started to dress Stephen’s wound in silence.

"I didn't have any procedures," said Stephen finally. "Nobody I spoke to had heard of Kamar-Taj and I was starting to think that Pangborn had lied or I don’t even know what I thought to be honest.” 

Tony just continued to work quietly on Stephen’s chest.

“I was mugged on my first night in Kathmandu,” continued Stephen and Tony glanced at him and their eyes met for the briefest of moments before the shorter man focused his attention back on dressing the cut. “They took my bag and everything in it," said Stephen. “They took my phone and my tablet and the last few dollars I had to my name. They broke my watch too… I was lying there on the ground as they kicked me and I thought I was going to die and honestly Tone? Right then I didn’t care if I died or not.”

Tony looked at him. “What happened?”

“Karl saved me,” said Stephen simply. “He scared off the muggers and got my watch back… It’s broken but I’m happy he got it back.”

“Who’s Karl?” asked Tony. He understood now. Stephen hadn’t made contact because he had a new boyfriend. Of course, he did. He couldn’t believe he had been so naive. Of course, Stephen had found someone. There was no way Stephen would have stayed single for an entire year. Stephen and Karl were probably living together somewhere and here he was the jerk who only got to sew Stephen up and send him on his merry way back to his boyfriend. 

“He’s not my boyfriend,” said Stephen. “He’s just a friend and I mean that. Hell, I’m not even sure if he would call himself my friend. Probably goes against one of his rules as a teacher…” Stephen hesitated he sensed Tony didn’t believe him for some reason. “There’s been nobody else since we had our night together by the way,” Stephen blushed slightly at admitting this fact. 

“Really?” asked Tony. 

Stephen simply nodded. 

Tony had been on a few dates in the past couple months, when he had finally accepted that Stephen wasn’t coming home. None of the dates had really gone anywhere though and he hadn’t seen anyone anymore than three times. They’d mostly been hook ups more than anything else. He hadn’t wanted to find someone to settle down with… Well, he wasn’t ready to commit to someone else just yet. Someone who wasn’t the man lying on the table in front of him. Tony looked at Stephen. God, he had missed him. He couldn’t even stay angry that he hadn’t made contact in over a year because he was here now. In what Stephen had thought were his dying moments he had come to him and Tony felt a heaviness in his chest just at the idea of that. “So,” he said. “Where have you been all this time?”

“Karl saved me and took me to a learning temple called Kamar-Taj and he introduced me to our leader known as The Ancient One and-

Tony raised an eyebrow at this statement. "Oh, so you joined a cult." 

Stephen blushed. "No, I didn't. Not exactly. I mean, they did teach me to tap into powers that I never even knew existed..."

Tony smiled despite himself. Stephen Strange had this annoying ability of being an asshole but also being incredibly adorable in equal measures. "Yeah, that sounds like a cult." 

"It's not a cult."

"Well, that's what a cultist would say," teased Tony.

Stephen rolled his eyes. "I learned how to perform magic, Tony. Kamar-Taj is a place of learning for sorcerers. The Karl guy I mentioned before is one of my teachers. He and The Ancient One and a few others have been teaching me how to perform spells." 

Tony definitely wasn't expected that as an answer. He would never have pegged Stephen for being a magician. Hell, if it wasn’t for Scarlet Witch and Loki he wouldn’t even believe in magic but he knew first hand that there were some powers that he didn’t understand but he never would have thought Stephen, a doctor and a man of science, would study magic of all things. 

"Wait, hold on,” said Tony seriously. Stephen looked up at him. “So, did you join a cult or go to Hogwarts?" asked Tony with a smirk.

Stephen laughed heartily and Tony smiled. God, he'd missed that sound. He never thought he'd hear it again. 

Stephen’s stopped laughing only when he began to cough and he made a move to sit up but Tony tried to hold him down. "Hey," he said "what are you doing?" 

"I'm late for a cult meeting," said Stephen as he made a move to get up again. "Don't want to lose ten points for Gryffindor." 

"Don't lie to me, Stephen," Tony said sternly holding Stephen where he was on the table. 

Stephen just stared at him. 

"You're in no way cool enough to be a Gryffindor."

Stephen laughed again and made another move to get up but Tony held him firm. "Stephen," he said still in his serious voice. "You just flatlined and I might not be a doctor like you but I've watched enough Gray's Anatomy that I know that isn't a good thing. I'm not letting you leave here unless you tell me what the hell is going on." 

With a groan, Stephen allowed himself to lie back down on the table. He needed to get back to the Sanctum, the zealot could come back at any minute or worse… Kaecilicius could come through that portal and attack him and Tony. He would never forgive himself if he got Tony killed. However, he really didn’t want to argue with Tony so he’d stay for a few minutes until Tony had finished cleaning up his cuts. He watched as Tony got some fresh water and antiseptic and a flannel to clean the scratches and cuts on his face. He’d give him five… no ten minutes and then he really needed to get going. Stephen found himself wishing time would stand still, he didn’t want to even think of leaving Tony behind again. 

Stephen was pulled from his thoughts as Tony applied some antiseptic to his forehead. “Ow,” he gasped. 

Tony laughed. “Seriously Stephen? A stab wound to the chest and it’s antiseptic that makes you say ‘ow’?”

Stephen grimaced. “I much prefer being the doctor to being the patient.”

“Don’t act like you don’t like a bit of roleplay, Tiger,” said Tony with a grin. 

Stephen laughed again and Tony was reminded again of how much he loved the sound of Stephen laughing. It was music to his ears, he wanted to record his laugh and use it as his text tone. Tony reached down and brushed Stephen’s hair out of his eyes with his fingers. Stephen unconsciously leaned into his touch and Tony smiled softly before he continued to clean Stephen up. “What happened tonight?”

"Well, a powerful sorcerer, who gave himself over to an ancient entity who can bend the very laws of physics, tried very hard to kill me, but I left him chained up in Greenwich Village, and the quickest way back there is through a dimensional gateway that I opened up in your bedroom."

Tony just stared at him as he finally put down the equipment he had used to clean up Stephen. "That's... the biggest load of crap I've ever heard." 

Stephen smiled weakly and made a move to stand up, Tony didn’t stop him this time but rather he instantly wrapped an arm around his waist to support him and Stephen put his own arm around Tony's neck as he finally made it to his feet. "I'll show you," said Stephen as he began to walk forward. 

Tony laughed. 

"What?" 

"You'll really use any excuse to bring me to the bedroom, won't you?" 

"Fuck you." 

"Gladly."

Stephen chuckled softly and wrapped his arm a little tighter around Tony. They walked towards Tony's bedroom in a comfortable silence. Stephen felt a little better now and he didn’t necessarily need to hold onto Tony to maintain his balance and walk but he also couldn’t seem to bring himself to remove his arm from around Tony. He felt at ease being this close to the other man, he felt safe. He felt like he was at home. 

"You shaved," said Tony finally as the made their way to Tony’s room. 

"A couple of times since we last met."

"I like it." 

"I thought you would."

Stephen held onto Tony a little tighter still. He knew once they got back to Tony’s bedroom and back to the portal that he would have to leave again and next time he might not leave Kaecilius alive. “I missed you,” he said honestly.

“I hadn’t even noticed you’d left.” 

“Ha.”

Tony smiled and held Stephen closer. “I missed you too, Potter.” 

“Can you stop with the Harry Potter references?”

“Not likely.”

They reached Tony’s bedroom and Stephen watched as the other man took in the sight of the portal. Stephen had seen so many beautiful sights in the last twelve months. He had experienced magic first hand, students and teachers alike expelling spells that looked like fireworks from their hands at the mere swish of the wrist. He had seen Everest and all four seasons in Nepal but nothing, not one of the scenes he had witnessed over the last year would be the look of utter amazement on Tony’s face when he saw the portal. Stephen couldn’t take his eyes away from him. He was simply gorgeous. 

“Wow,” said Tony finally. “Beautiful.”

Stephen didn’t take his eyes off Tony. “I know,” he said softly but he wasn’t talking about the portal. 

“Maybe you’re a step above Harry Potter,” said Tony.

Stephen smiled. “Thanks.”

Tony turned to face him, his face illuminated by the portal and the lights dancing off his face making his smile seem greater somehow “but you’re not as good as Hermione yet.” 

Stephen gave Tony’s shoulder a friendly shove before he took a step forward but Tony instantly reached for his hand and grabbed it firmly and Stephen grimaced at the pressure on his hand. He turned to face Tony. 

“Whatever is on the other side of that portal almost killed you,” said Tony. “I can’t let you go back alone.” 

“I’ll be fine.”

“Stephen, if whatever is on the other side of that portal almost killed you, I’m not letting you face it alone.” reiterated Tony. 

Stephen looked at his feet. “I’m just going to check that Karl and Wong are okay.”

“I’ll come with you.”

“You can’t.

“Why? 

“Because,” Stephen bit his lip. “I don’t want you to get hurt, okay?”

“And I don’t want you to be hurt.”

“I won’t be.”

“You already are, Stephen.”

“Just let me go and check things out and if it looks bad I’ll come back for you.”

Tony laughed humourlessly at that. “Oh, you’ll come back? Will you take another year to do that too? Leave me wondering if you’re even alive?”

Silence.

“I wouldn’t do that to you.”

“You already did.”

Stephen broke eye contact and he looked at their still joined hands. This wasn’t how things were supposed to happen. They weren’t supposed to argue. Not now. He hated himself for not making contact with Tony since arriving in Nepal. All of his reasons for not making contact just sounded like weak excuses in his head now. He could have written to him or rang him or used one of the communal computers to send him an email. Hell, he even could have opened a portal to him weeks ago but he never did. He’d been too scared. He was scared to call Tony and tell him that his hands were still useless. He was scared to call Tony and tell him that even after all this time his hands still shook as badly as they did after his accident. Most of all however, he was scared to contact Tony and to have found he had someone else, someone better, that he had found love and it was in the arms of another person. Someone who would put him first and make him feel special and important and like the only one who mattered. All the things Stephen longed to give Tony but had never been able to. Stephen Strange was an egotistical man but in no world had he ever deemed himself as someone who could love and be loved by Tony Stark. Tony deserved more than an ex-surgeon who had resorted to magic to fix his irreparable hands. The fact he had hurt Tony would haunt him forever and he couldn’t put him through any more pain. 

Stephen looked back up at Tony. He took his hands from the other man’s grasp and cupped Tony’s face in his shaking hands. He closed the distance between them and rested his forehead against Tony’s. “I was an asshole and I’m truly sorry, Tony. Don’t think I never thought of you because it’s the opposite. I thought of you every day and I… I almost wrote to you so many times but I couldn’t find the words I wanted to say to you. I was a coward, Tony... I know I can never make up for the hurt that I've caused you but I- 

Tony cut him off by kissing him. Stephen moved his arms to Tony's hips and he felt the shorter man pull him in closer and wrap his arms around his neck. Stephen melted into the kiss. God, he had missed this. Kissing Tony was electric. He felt alive in Tony's arms and that all his problems and worries faded away to nothing.

Tony finally broke the kiss and Stephen again rested his forehead against Tony's. "Will you kiss me like that every time I fuck up?" 

Tony smiled softly at him. "Don't count on it." 

Stephen kissed him chastely on the lips before kissing his nose and forehead. "I'm just going to be a few minutes, I promise."

"Stephen-

"Trust me," said Stephen. "Please? I just want to make sure that Wong and Karl are okay and I need to talk to The Ancient One about something and then I'll come back here. This... whatever it is they're fighting isn't my war... I went to Kamar-Taj to fix my hands, not this.”

Tony brushed his knuckles down Stephen’s cheek. He didn’t want him to go, he didn’t want to let him leave but… he knew if he was in the same position and he thought Steve and Rhodey were in danger that nothing would stop him from checking in on them. “Okay,” said Tony finally. “Go check on your friends and I’ll put a pot of coffee on and you better be back before it goes cold.” 

“To be fair it being cold couldn’t be any worse than the tar you put in a cup and call ‘coffee’,” teased Stephen. 

Tony leaned in and kissed him one last time. 

No, he told himself. 

Not for the last time because Stephen would be back in a few minutes. He was coming back this time. 

He definitely was coming back. Tony deepened the kiss and he felt Stephen’s shaking hands vibrating on his hips. Stephen wouldn’t leave him and not come back like last time. He’d only be a few minutes, a half hour tops. 

Stephen pulled away. “I’ve really got to go,” he said finally. He kissed Tony once more before stepping into the portal. “I’ll be right back,” he said. “I promise.”

And with a flick of his wrist he was gone and the portal vanished and Tony was left standing in the dark. Alone. 

He was shaking and somehow managed to make it to the bed without falling over it. Had… had all that really just happened? Was he dreaming? He turned on the light and tried to even out his breathing. He closed his eyes and tried to calm down but every time he closed his eyes he got the image of Stephen lying lifeless on the table and he could heard the flat beep of the heart monitor. 

What if Stephen had died? What if he had died and it had all been his fault? Why hadn’t he just called an ambulance as soon as Stephen had collapsed in his kitchen? Why had he even tried to clean him up himself? What had he been thinking? Tony groaned. He’d almost lost Stephen today and it would have been all his fault. 

Tony stretched his shaking hands out in front of him and his heart dropped when he saw the crimson stains on his hands. 

He literally had Stephen's blood on his hands.

He felt sick. 

Tony managed to pull himself up from the bed and just made it to the toilet before throwing up. He thought he was going to cough up his lungs along with the contents of his stomach. It felt like his gut was doing flips in his abdomen and he felt like utter shit as he knelt on the cold tile floor and leaned against the porcelain of the toilet using his arm as a pillow as his stomach lurched. 

He sat like that on the floor until the nausea passed. He finally managed to pull himself up to his feet and flushed the toilet and moved towards the sink and washed his hands. He felt sick again as he watched the water that was dyed pink with the remnants of Stephen's blood wash down the drain but he didn't throw up again so he figured that was a bonus. 

His mouth felt disgusting and all he could taste was bile so he started to brush his teeth to get rid of the taste of vomit in his mouth. Tony was distractingly brushing his teeth and still thinking of Stephen. He shouldn't have let him go. Hell, he'd almost died and he'd just let him... walk out of here? How could he do that? He didn't even know where Stephen was. He'd said something about Greenwich Village but fuck the man could just open portals anywhere he could be in Italy for all Tony knew. 

Tony spat into the sink, wiped his mouth and washed his hands again. He gripped the basin and stared into his own reflection in the mirror. He looked tired. He was tired. Turns out carrying the lifeless body of your ex-boyfriend and performing lifesaving treatment on him and seeing his "astral form" ghost thing took a lot out of you. He felt like he could sleep for a week. He couldn't sleep though. 

Every time he closed his eyes he saw Stephen's prone body lying on the table and he could hear the flat tone of the monitor when his heart had stopped. 

Tony gripped the basin tighter, he could feel his heart racing in his chest and suddenly breathing seemed impossible. Not again... No... Not now... Not now... 

He put down the lid of the toilet and sat down with his head between his knees and tried to focus on only his breathing. Breathe in for three seconds… Breathe out for three seconds... In for three seconds… Out for three seconds… In for three seconds… Out for three seconds… 

Stephen was okay. Bloody and sore but he was okay. He was alive. He was okay. He, himself, was okay too. He was in his flat and it was safe and he was okay. 

"You're okay, Stark," he said to himself. "Pull yourself together." 

It was another fifteen minutes before he felt strong enough to stand up again. He cleaned over the bathroom quickly and put everything back in its place and he washed his face. The cool water helped somehow. It helped him feel more grounded. 

He checked his watch. Stephen had been gone for almost half an hour now and he felt sick again at the thoughts of this... What if something had gone wrong? He should be back by now, right? 

"Stop it," he told himself. "You saw how badly injured Stephen was, if his friends were hurt the same way of course he would spend time with them. He is a doctor after all and their friend." 

Tony finally left the bathroom and padded through his bedroom and down the hall to the kitchen. He put on the coffee maker even though he highly doubted caffeine was a sensible choice for him right now but honestly, he didn't care. He needed a coffee.

***

Tony stood at his balcony and watched the snow in New York City. 

The coffee had long gone cold and Tony had made another pot just for that to go cold too. 

Stephen had been gone for three hours. 

Tony sighed. Why had he let him go? Why? He should have made him stay or at least put up more of a fight to go with him… He’d almost died for fuck’s sake. He was in no state to be left on his own he could have collapsed from utter exhaustion at any moment. What if he died because he had let him go alone? He was supposed to be fucking Iron Man and he had let Stephen go off on his own. What had he been thinking? 

Tony groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose between his forefinger and his thumb. What If by not following Stephen he had lost him forever? Tony swore under his breath and went back into the flat slamming the balcony door behind him. Standing around here moping wasn’t going to do Stephen any good so he decided he would take a trip down to Greenwich Village and see if he could find the other man. Tony walked down to the hall to his bedroom to get his car keys and flipped on the main light on the wall and jumped when he saw Stephen Strange sitting on the foot of his bed and a crimson cloak floating in the air beside him. 

"Hey," said Stephen without looking up. 

"You do know I've a perfectly working doorbell that you could ring and I'll let you in, right?" said Tony still scared out of his skin at Stephen just sitting there unannounced. He was of course relieved that Stephen was here and alive but fuck him anyway did he have to be so dramatic about it? "You almost gave me a heart attack, I-

Stephen finally looked up and Tony saw the man was crying. Tony instantly forgot his anger and padded towards Stephen and sat beside him on the bed. He wrapped his arms around him and held him close. 

"What happened?"

"She's dead," answered Stephen.

"Who is?"

"The Ancient One," replied Stephen. "My mentor." 

Tony held Stephen tighter and kissed the top of his head before resting his chin on Stephen's hair. They sat in silence like that for what felt like a long time as Stephen pulled himself together. His talk with the Ancient One was replaying in his head and he knew what he had to go and do but he still didn't feel ready. 

Only a few hours ago he was ready to leave Kamar-Taj and continue his studies at home in New York to fix his hands and when he learned that Pangborn simply channelled magic to enable himself to walk he thought he would be back in his surgeon’s gown by the end of the month but now… He finally saw the greater picture. It wasn’t all about him and it shouldn’t have ever always been about him. When he started uni and began studying medicine to find a cure to help his sister, Donna, he had cared about helping others but after she had died… He vowed he would never lose a patient so he didn’t take patients who were likely to die. He only helped those he knew he could save and as the years went on his own clean record mattered more to him than the people he treated. Donna would hate if she saw what her big brother had become. He wasn’t a doctor to save lives, he was a doctor for the fortune saving lives had brought him. He thought back to the conversation he had had with Christine on the day of his accident: 

“Well, all the more reason why you should be my neurosurgeon on call. You could make such a difference.”

“I can't work in your butcher shop.”

“Hey! Look, he...”

“Look, I'm using trans-sectioned spinal cords to stimulate neurogenesis in the central nervous system. My work is at least going to save thousands for years to come. In the ER, I get to save one drunk idiot with a gun.”

“Yeah, you're right. In the ER, you're only saving lives. There's no fame, there's no CNN interviews...”

He’d used to pretend he did what he did because he was saving more lives with his research than in ER but he knew that wasn’t the real reason he chose research over the ER and so did the people around him. If he truly cared about saving lives he would have been Christine’s neurosurgeon on call and going in there day after day doing the work that mattered and saving lives each time he went in for a shift at the hospital. Of course, his study and research had been important but he had also ignored the plights of so many people over the years because the risk was too great and his own clean record and media representation mattered more to him. He found himself now in a similar situation, did he fix his hands so he could go back to medicine to save some lives and receive the good fortune and fame that his old work once brought him or did he follow The Ancient One’s word and go into the tougher and more hands on approach of saving lives and protect the world with his knowledge of the mystic arts which was just like going into the ER night after night. No fame and no glory. It was time to stop being selfish and bathing in the glories of surgery. He knew what he had to do and he was finally going to do what he should do and not just what he wanted to do. 

Stephen sniffed and pulled out of Tony's hug but rested his shaking hand on Tony's knee. Stephen stared into Tony's eyes and had an urge to kiss him. He put his other hand on the back of Tony's neck and kissed him. Tony put his hands on Stephen's hips and kissed him back. Stephen felt he could stay in this moment forever, kissing Tony. If the Ancient One wished to make a single moment of a snowstorm last a lifetime than this is what he'd want to make last an eternity, the moment of kissing and holding Tony Stark. But... he couldn't stay in this moment forever. He just couldn't. 

Stephen pulled away from Tony and rested is forehead against Tony's. He nuzzled his nose against Tony's and his heart swelled at the gentle chuckle the other man made. 

"I love you," said Stephen. 

Tony froze. It had been years since anyone had said that to him. He'd forgotten what it felt like to hear those words. He kissed Stephen again and again. "I love you too," he said. 

"That's because you've got good taste."

"Debatable." 

"You're a bastard,” chuckled Stephen.

"You love me though."

Stephen smiled. He wiped Tony's tears from his eyes. "I've gotta go," he said. 

Tony reached up for Stephen's wrists. "Please don't." 

Stephen looked down at the floor. "I have to, Tone. I finally see the path I'm supposed to follow. The man I've got to be. I have to go." 

“I thought this wasn’t your battle,” said Tony. 

Stephen opened the portal to Kamar-Taj and as the portal brought an orange glow to the room he turned to face Tony again. 

Tony looked amazing in this light. Well, he looked amazing no matter what the light but Stephen was admittingly a bit bias when it came to Tony looking well. He knew he had hurt him. 

Again.

Causing Tony pain was enough to make him forget all this and just take Tony in his arms and hold him and to keep holding him and to forget about Kaecilius and Dormammu and the end of the world. 

But he couldn’t do that. 

He always wanted to be a man who was deserving of Tony’s love and he knew what he had to do to be that man. That man didn’t own a collection of watches that cost more than most people made in a year and that man also wasn’t the top surgeon on the east coast. A man who was deserving of Tony Stark’s love was someone who put the needs of others before his own. Someone who cared more about the lives he saved and not the good fortune that it brought him. Tony deserved someone who wasn’t just going to sit with him tonight but someone who could sit with him every night because he had gone out there and made sure the evils that threatened them didn’t succeed. 

 

Tony crossed the room and took Stephen's hands in his own. He looked down at the shaking hands in his palms. "You didn't fix your hands," he said simply. 

"I found something more important than my hands," answered Stephen. 

Tony looked up at Stephen then and wiped away a tear from the other man's face with his thumb. 

"Just... 

"What?" Stephen's voice broke.

"Come back to me, okay?" said Tony his own voice breaking. 

"I will."

Tony put his hand on Stephen's neck and brought him down to kiss him. 

They were both crying now. Stephen rested his forehead on Tony's. 

"How about you forget about saving the world and just come back to my room and fuck instead?" 

Stephen laughed. "Tempting."

Tony smiled, he swept a stray hair behind Stephen's ear. He wanted nothing more than to lead Stephen over to his bed and kiss him and make love to him and hold him and to forget about the outside world and just pretend it was just the two of them. However, he also knew that whatever Stephen had to go off and fight that it was important and that it was his fight. You didn’t put on the Iron Man suit for this long to not understand that the needs of the many outweigh your own needs and he was proud to see Stephen truly putting others before himself. He kissed him once more. "Go get them, Tiger."

Stephen kissed Tony's forehead before finally pulling away from Tony, casting his sling ring and heading through it. He took a moment to calm himself as he saw the shattered library of Kamar-Taj and his eyes found Mordo. He took a deep breath, he couldn't think of leaving Tony right now or he'd break down again. He had a job to do. 

***

After a walk around in the Hong Kong Sanctum to make sure everything seemed okay, Stephen and Wong travelled back towards Kamar Taj.

Stephen felt exhausted. It felt like a lifetime ago since he had taken the Eye of Agamtotto from its stand and had open the book of Cagliostro. He had travelled between different time zones and had even died a lot since then and he was confused and tired and shaken. He felt both hurt and angry that Karl had left but he also felt too tired to even fully think through what it actually meant that Karl was gone. 

Once Stephen and Wong were happy the Hong Kong Sanctum was back to normal and all signs of Kaecilius were gone they travelled back to Kamar-Taj. They walked through the portal to the library and Stephen grimaced at the sight of all the rubble from the first explosion Kaecilius had caused. They may have won the battle but there was so much left to clean up and with the Masters of the New York and London Sanctum dead and both of their Sanctums in a mess the workload seemed impossibly hard. Stephen felt he should be celebrating defeating Kaecilius and Dormammu but with the loss of The Ancient One and Karl and the destruction to the place he had called home for over a year well… there didn't seem to be much to celebrate. 

Stephen just wanted to sleep. Was there a spell to clean everything up in about three seconds flat? He sighed. He couldn't leave Wong to clean all this up on his own. He wanted nothing more than to go back to Tony's apartment and just try and put tonight behind him for now but... he looked around. How could he leave Wong with this mess? 

"You could not make it more obvious that you have a place that you would rather be, Strange," said Wong. 

Stephen smiled ruefully. "Am I that easy to read?" 

Wong shrugged. "Like a book."

Stephen smiled again and to his surprise Wong smiled back... Well, he thought it was a smile. It could have been a trick of the light. 

"It's been a long night, Stephen," said Wong. "You've been through a lot. You should go get some rest, whether that be here in Kamar-Taj or in New York."

"How did you-

"Like a book, Stephen."

 

"Thank you, Wong," said Stephen. "I'll be back tomorrow to help clean this up."

Wong laughed. LAUGHED. For the second time that night. Stephen began to wonder if the man had hit his head.

"Help?" laughed Wong. "You're cleaning up the whole place, Strange."

"What? Why?"

"Well," began Wong. "Not only must we begin to set in motion what is to become of Kamar-Taj without the Ancient One as well as find a new Master for the London Sanctum, I'll be otherwise detained doing a stock take of the books in the library as SOMEONE seems to like stealing books at night." 

Stephen laughed. "You're a hard man, Wong."

"Rest up, Strange," said Wong walking past him and down one of the aisles of books. "Tomorrow will bring a lot of change to Kamar-Taj."

Stephen sighed and left the library and headed across the courtyard to his room. 

He glanced at the clock on the wall. It was 9am which Stephen worked out meant it was about 10pm in New York. He wanted nothing more than to curl up with Tony in bed and sleep for about a week. 

Stephen looked at himself in the mirror and he looked terrible. His robes were covered in dust, dirt and blood and his face was a mixture of cuts and bruises. His hair was wet with sweat and he basically looked a mess. He didn't want Tony to see him like this so he tiredly pulled off his robes and went for a shower. The shower was far from luxurious in his quarters but after the night he had had and after dying multiple times (Stephen doubted that it would ever not feel weird to say that) even lukewarm water raining down his back felt like Heaven. He spent longer than he meant to in the shower only finally turning the water off when the temperature dropped too low for him to find soothing anymore. 

He padded out of the bathroom and towelled off and took his pyjamas from his locker. They were the same pyjamas Tony had laid out for him the day he had found him on the streets. He'd washed them many times since then and they didn't smell like Tony anymore but wearing them made him feel closer to Tony somehow. 

Stephen checked himself out in the mirror again and he looked a lot better after his shower. He felt a lot better too. He glanced at the clock again and he hoped that Tony would still be awake back in New York before he took his Sling Ring and opened a portal to his apartment.

Stephen felt guilty almost as he opened a portal to Tony's apartment for the third time that night. He had gone over a year without seeing Tony and now he was going to him for the third time in a couple of hours. 

He opened the portal in Tony’s bedroom and found the room in almost complete darkness apart from the soft glow of a lamp by Tony’s bedside. Stephen smiled softly at the peaceful form of a fast-asleep Tony lying on the bed. 

Stephen padded gently towards the bed. He was exhausted and he wanted nothing more than to sink into the bed beside the other man. He managed to get into the bed without rousing Tony and propped himself up on his elbow to kiss him tenderly on his brow and then his nose and lips. 

Tony's eyes fluttered open when Stephen kissed him. He hummed into the kiss. 

"Hey," he said groggily. 

Stephen nuzzled his nose. "Hey you."

"Finished saving the world?"

"Just about."

Tony glanced over at the clock on his bedside. "You took your time. I know a 15-year-old who would have saved all our asses and done all his homework and built a LEGO Millennium Falcon by now."

"You're a dick."

"A dick you took your sweet time saving from whatever magic disaster was happening."

Tony kissed Stephen then and Stephen leaned in to deepen the kiss and Tony ran his hands up and down Stephen's back. Tony flipped Stephen over so he was on top of him and straddled his hips and broke the kiss just to kiss a line down Stephen’s jawline to the base of his throat. 

Tony finally pulled up to look at the man beneath him. “I’ve missed you.”

Stephen caressed Tony’s face with his shaking fingers. “For a moment tonight, I didn’t think I’d be coming back to you and the thoughts of never seeing you again, never holding you again, never kissing you again got me through it. I fought for you.”

Tony brushed the errant curl that always seemed to flop over Stephen’s eyes away from his face. He looked exhausted. Tony wasn’t sure what he had been through tonight and he didn’t feel it was the right time to ask. That was a conversation that could wait until morning. Right now, he just wanted to hold Stephen and enjoy this moment of calm between them. “I love you,” he said simply. 

Stephen smiled and kissed him. “I love you too,” he breathed softly against Tony’s mouth. Tony reached over and turned off the bedside light and pulled the duvet over them both and nuzzled into Stephen’s chest, being careful of the stab wound from earlier and he allowed himself to relax as he felt Stephen pull him in closer still. 

Stephen breathed in the comforting scent of Tony as the man drifted off in his arms and he smiled. Christine was right. There was more to life than his hands and that life was his work in Kamar-Taj and most importantly that life was the man lying asleep in his arms.


End file.
